"LIVE AND LET LIVE"
In human experience people differ in education, points of view, and accomplishments. This calls for the exercise of the highest degree of understanding, good will, and forbearance among men. Mary Baker Eddy writes (Message to The Mother Church for 1902, p. 2), "To live and let live, without clamor for distinction or recognition; to wait on divine Love; to write truth first on the tablet of one's own heart,—this is the sanity and perfection of living, and my human ideal."
In this statement our Leader has pointed out the Christianly scientific basis for the establishment of right, harmonious relationships between men and nations. In all our daily activities our object should include identification of thought with the truth of being; the practice of unselfishness; and a willingness to await quietly and expectantly the outcome of events.
When one is tempted to rebuke or speak in criticism of an individual, a group, or a nation, it is always helpful to pause and seek the guidance of divine Mind, and obey the injunction of the Master (John 7:24), "Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment."
In her book "No and Yes" Mrs. Eddy writes (p. 8): "We should endeavor to be long-suffering, faithful, and charitable with all. To this small effort let us add one more privilege—namely, silence whenever it can substitute censure." This does not mean that we should never rebuke error. It is the unthinking, unloving, and unjust criticism, which springs unchecked from the tongue, that sometimes causes suffering and separation.
Even the rebuke of righteous judgment, the desire to help and uncover sin or error in the thought of a friend or relative, may well be weighed before it is put into words. The silent contemplation of the spiritual facts of existence and their quiet application to any human situation often bring about a correction of the error and make it unnecessary for the rebuke to be given at all.
In rebuking error the aim of the Christian Scientist should always be to separate the tares from the wheat, to separate the evil, or error, in human thought from the individual. To rebuke a person is to cling to a material sense of personality, and this can only lead to further discord. But to recognize an individual in his true spiritual being as a son of God, and to reject as unreal the error which appears to be an element of human personality, is to bring about the healing and harmony which demonstrate the truth of being.
Human will is often substituted for obedience to the divine will. It attempts to force the individual into its mold of material personality; it tries to hurry or push the object of its attention into new and unfamiliar ways of doing things, but with bad results. The willful attempt to force, rebuke, reform, results in arguments, hatred, wars, and inhuman acts, which bless no one. But the desire for spiritual understanding and the cultivation of unselfishness, love, and forbearance point the way to healing, peace, and good will on earth.
Paul writes of spiritual love that it "beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things" (I Cor. 13:7). This does not mean that we are to fold our hands and endure evil without a murmur. Love and forbearance require great spiritual activity.
A friend who is a teacher told me the following experience which illustrates the fruits of love and forbearance, of refraining from the impulse to rebuke. One of his pupils had become involved in a mishap. One day in the classroom this young boy had spilled a bottle of ink over his copybook, and its pages were covered with black spots. The teacher, an earnest Christian Scientist, stood silently before the class of boys, who were expecting him to administer a severe beating, according to the established practice in their country.
The thought came to the teacher not to touch the child, but at least to rebuke him severely before the class for his carelessness. Then came the angel message to let divine Love control the situation completely, and to the wonderment of his pupils the teacher went right on with the lesson without referring to the incident.
The following Monday, when school reopened, the pupil brought a new book, in which he had rewritten all the lessons from his first book. And great were the gratitude and joy of the teacher when he recognized the remarkable improvement in the boy's penmanship. What a lesson in forbearance both teacher and pupils had learned from this experience.
In our homes, in our churches, in business or other affairs, it is always well to "live and let live," to practice the truth of God and man persistently and systematically. Christ Jesus pointed the way. He exposed and rebuked error, but everything he did was inspired by love for God and his fellow men. And our revered Leader counsels us to walk in his footsteps. Referring to the Christian way of living, she writes (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 454): "Love is priestess at the altar of Truth. Wait patiently for divine Love to move upon the waters of mortal mind, and form the perfect concept. Patience must 'have her perfect work.'"
Harold Molter
